Transportinfo.org.uk - today's transport news in the uk, hand picked for you each morning

Tuesday, 22 November 2011

BBC News

• Labour Party launches petition over rail consultation The Scottish Labour Party has urged the public to sign a petition as part of its campaign to protect Scotland's sleeper train service.
• Will the government back a £50bn airport for London? [video clip]London Mayor Boris Johnson has set out the economic reasons why he believes a £50bn airport needs to be built in the south-east of England.
• Sea crossing security talks heldTalks are held at a new ferry port to discuss security on sea crossings between Scotland and Northern Ireland.
• Trains to transport nuclear fuelTrains are to start moving tonnes of nuclear fuel from Dounreay in Caithness to Sellafield in Cumbria from next summer.
• New all-day bus lane for BelfastThe first all-day bus lane in Belfast city centre goes into operation.
• Eight buses are attacked at depotEight buses are damaged in an attack at a depot in Lisburn, County Antrim.
• Livingstone pledges fairer travelFormer Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, says he will re-introduce the zone 2-6 day travelcard to replace the one scrapped by Boris Johnson, if elected.
• Heathrow flights return to normalServices at Heathrow and London City airport are returning to normal after fog forced the cancellation of flights in and out of London for two days.
• Mayor outlines case for airportBoris Johnson outlines the economic case for a new hub airport in the south-east of England.

Financial Times

• Qantas dispute enters arbitration The Australian airline fails to reach a settlement with its unions over job cuts after 21 days of talks
• No UK opt-out on airport body scannersTransport secretary tells the Commons she wants to see more airports use security scanners as a means of combating terrorism

The Independent

• Goodnight to the sleeper train The Highland Sleeper, one of Britain's most romantic travel experiences, is under threat from the cuts. So is this the end of our affair with overnight rail travel?
• Body scanners to be used at more airportsPassengers will not be allowed to fly unless they undergo full body scans, the Transport Secretary has announced.
• No opt-out for passengers on body scannersAir passengers will not be allowed to opt out of body scanning operations at airports, the Government announced today.

Reuters News

• UK says air passengers may not opt out of body scansLONDON (Reuters) - Air passengers travelling to and from the United Kingdom will not be able to opt out of having a body security scan, the country's transport secretary said on Monday.

Network Rail

• RAIL DELIVERY GROUP SEES SIGNIFICANT OPPORTUNITIES TO REDUCE RAIL INDUSTRY COSTSRail Delivery Group

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Public backs £7m Bradford rail station Rail passengers welcomed plans for a long-awaited £7.2 million railway station during a public display of the proposed scheme.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Tram contract lawyers hired for new Forth bridge project The law firm that helped draw up the contract for Edinburgh’s embattled tram project has been doing legal work for the replacement Forth crossing, it emerged today.

Liverpool Echo

• Georgia Varley's family want Merseyrail to install platform safety gates, to stop anyone else falling under trainTHE FAMILY and friends of Liverpool underground train tragedy victim Georgia Varley have called for safety gates to be installed on the platforms of Merseryrail stations.

London Evening Standard

• We'll be a laughing stock without Island airport, says BorisBoris Johnson put himself on a collision course with ministers as he warned Britain faces becoming an international laughing stock if a new hub airport is not built in the Thames estuary

Manchester Evening News

• All aboard: Bus firm and town halls in new bid to beat congestionTransport bosses have given the green light to a scheme aimed at improving bus journeys along one of the busiest routes in Britain. They have joined forces with two local councils and bus companies to set up the region™s first Quality Bus Partnership on the A6 Stockport Road from Manchester to Stockport and Hazel Grove.

Yorkshire Post

• No opt-out of body scans at airportsAir passengers will not be allowed to opt out of body scanning operations at airports, the Government announced yesterday.

Bucks Free Press

• Rail campaign group Railfuture urge rethink on High Speed 2A MAJOR rail campaign group has called on the Government to urgently rethink plans for High Speed 2.
• Rail campaign group Railfuture urge rethink on High Speed 2A MAJOR rail campaign group has called on the Government to urgently rethink plans for High Speed 2.

Other Regional Press

• Row over Pendle MP's public transport comments A POLITICAL row has erupted after Pendle MP Andrew Stephenson slammed public transport in the area as 'poor'.
• Behind The Headlines: Bus station a ˜total disgrace™Earlier this week, one of the most important steps forward in the long-term improvement of Northampton was made when the West Northamptonshire Development Corporation (WNDC) agreed to award £8 million of Government money towards the creation of a new bus station for the town.
• Boris: 'Airport is no fantasy'Boris Johnson dismisses critics of a Thames Estuary airport, saying it is vital to avoid
• M2 safety improvements under wayNew road markings it's claimed reduce accidents by more than 50% are being painted onto the motorway.
• Huddersfield Railway Station welcomes a new member of staff – Felix the station catFELIX the cat will be keeping a watchful eye over Huddersfield Railway Station’s visitors.
• Leeds Bradford airport proves popular in new surveyWEST Yorkshire’s airport has featured strongly in latest passenger information survey from the Civil Aviation Authority.
• Fog causes flight chaos for Aberdeen passengersABERDEEN air passengers have been caught up in delays after dense fog caused disruption at Heathrow.

Campaign for Better Transport

• RAC call for new roads rests on shaky foundationsIt seems the RAC Foundation needs reminding that population and traffic growth are no longer joined at the hip. read more

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Wales 'needs improved road and rail links'Transport infrastructure in Wales needs to be improved, according to a survey of Institute of Directors (IoD) Wales members.The BBC reports that the majority of those questioned believe the M4 and major road links in the north of the country should be the subject of further investment, while many claim that Cardiff Airport needs more connecting flights.According to the IoD, members remain unconvinced about the proposed high-speed rail project currently being considered by the government, with many stating that the scheme represents poor value for money.Robert Lloyd Griffiths, director of the i...

Global Rail News

• East Coast launches new Wi-Fi gatewayTrain operator East Coast has launched a new welcome page for its popular Wi-Fi service “ the first of its kind in the UK rail industry ...
• Unipart Rail signs distribution agreement with RBLIUnipart Rail has announced that it has signed an agreement with Royal British Legion Industries to double the range of trackside signage carried in the Unipart ...
• Central line trains to be ˜overhauled™ for 2012 GamesPassengers using the Central line will ‘soon begin to benefit from a rejuvenation of their carriages’, TfL has said. After 19 years in service the current ...
• Double Innovation in ElectrificationOn 22 October 2011 Balfour Beatty Rail, working alongside Balfour Beatty Engineering Services Traction Group, installed the Paisley Gilmour Street Track Side Cabin as part of ...
• Re-Signalling Heritage StyleMuch has been written about new signalling schemes on Network Rail, London Underground and elsewhere. The wonders of modern electronics and computer control make fascinating reading ...
• Blackpool IlluminationsIssue 84 (October 2011) of the rail engineer magazine included a report on the world launch of the new BOMBARDIER FLEXITY 2 tram at Blackpool. That ...
• Clever KarlsruheFor several years, the mass rapid transit (MRT) system in the German city of Karlsruhe and its surrounding region has been the subject of an interesting ...
• Manchester Metrolink 20 Years of EvolutionManchester™s Metrolink first opened in April 1992, running from Altrincham to Manchester city centre and on to Bury. This was the first of the second generation ...

Aviation Industry

• Airlines all over the map on in-flight pornWhen Ryanair's chief executive, Michael O'Leary, announced recently that his airline may soon offer in-flight pornography, he told the British tabloid The Sun,
• Qantas talks break down, FWA to resolve dispute in arbitrationFair Work Australia (FWA) will resolve the long-running between Qantas (QF) and three labor unions with binding arbitration after negotiations broke down over the weekend.
• Weather woes hit UK flightsPassengers flying out of London™s Heathrow and City airports have been hit by cancellations and delays
• Business leaders unsure about HS2Heathrow expansion considered more important, Institute of Directors™ survey reveals

Other News Sources

• Royal Fleet Auxiliary vote for industrial action in pensions fightSHIPPING UNION RMT confirmed this morning that members on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary have voted by large margins for strike action and action short of a strike in the dispute over pensions.
• RMT demands action from Boris Johnson as cleaners are sacked by underground contractor to fund London Living WageTUBE UNION RMT has today written to London Mayor Boris Johnson after it emerged that tube cleaning contractors Initial are planning to sack staff in order to fund the costs of paying their workers the London Living Wage.
• News from John Biggs: How safe are roads in East London? 21 November, 2011 Local London Assembly member John Biggs is calling on local residents to name the most dangerous roads, junctions and roundabouts in East London. The appeal for information comes at the start of national Road Safety Week (21 - 27 November 2011). According to Transport for London (TfL), pedestrian/cyclist casualties are up 17 per cent in Barking & Dagenham in the last year, 27 per cent in City of London, 10 per cent in Newham and down 9 per cent in Tower Hamlets 360-house-thu...
• News from John Biggs: Boris Shuts Down East London For The Weekend 21 November, 2011 Local London Assembly member, John Biggs, has today complained to TfL about their shutting down of a large chunk of East London this past weekend. The District Line was suspended between Tower Hill & Upminster and the DLR was suspended between Bank/Tower Gateway and Poplar/West India Quay. As a result of this closure of both main modes of transport into central London, many residents found it increasingly difficult to travel, without experiencing significant delays. 360-hous...
• Hapag-Lloyd announces strong third quarter Hapag-Lloyd generated an operating result (adjusted EBIT) of €36.7m in the third quarter 2011. This took the operating result for the first nine months of the current financial year to €78.8m. EBITDA came to approximately €275m in the first nine month of 2011. Group earnings after interest and taxes (EAT) were also positive in the third quarter at €9.6m. This made the third quarter the best in the current financial year to date. read more
• UK's first electric hearse takes part in green burial eventAt long last we have an environmentally responsible replacement for conventional hearses “ the dinosaurs of the road. 22/11/11